A mother's
advise to her star son: work hard, sing in tune ... and wear your dark glasses
in public when we're in a hurry
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Kids from tiny tots to
teens hero worship talented young stars Hi-5. While the five are
over the moon with the group's runaway success, they agree that some special
unsung heroes are the ones who made it all possible - their beloved mums!
Holding her mother Kerry's
hand, Charli recalls: "We were living outside of Sydney and my mum used to
drive me three hours to Sydney just for a one-hour drama class and then home
again." Charli,
21, who was a member of Young Stars before she joined Hi-5, says she is so
grateful to her mum. "She
didn't have to do it. She knew it was something I wanted to do. She
is my best friend," says Charli.
It's a similar story with
the other 4 members of the three-time Logie Award winners Hi-5, who have just
released a new album, It's a Hi-5 Christmas, and a new video, Playing
Cool. Their TV series on the Nine Network is one of the most popular
and they won an ARIA for best children's album for their debut CD Jump and
Jive with Hi-5.
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Nathan Foley, 22, who
graduated from The McDonald College in Sydney, had his mum's support from a
young age. Julie Foley recognized her son's talent when, at the age of
six, he not only began singing along with the car radio, but she realized he was
singing in tune. "He
works very hard at what he does and he loves what he does and it shows
through," says Julie. "And that's the main thing. As long
as you are happy at what you do, it shines through." Julie
also has a confession: "when Nathan first started in Hi-5, it was a thrill
to walk down the street with him and find that so many people recognized
him. Now when we go shopping together I say, 'Put your dark glasses and a
hat on because we are in a hurry'."
Kathleen de Leon was a
teenage guest on the show At Home with John Mangos and, like Nathan,
graduated from The McDonald College. "It
was her teachers at school who recognized she had talent and they just moulded
her," says Epsie de Leon. Espie
describes herself as "an ordinary mum" who wanted all her children -
Kathleen, who is aged 22, has 2 younger sisters - to enjoy growing up.
"Mum's very much loving
and very caring and she's given me ever ounce of support all through my
life," says Kathleen, who was just a year old when her family migrated from
the Philippines.
Kellie Hoggart, 26,
clearly adores her mum, Sonjie. "My mother is a beautiful soul and a
beautiful spirit and supports me in everything that I do," says Kellie -
and suddenly bursts into tears. "I'm sorry," she says, "I
just love her so much it makes me cry." Sonjie
just holds her hand and smiles. "She'll be OK, she just tends to be
very emotional sometimes," she says. While
Kellie's of earshot, playing with her poodle Cassie, Sonjie speaks about her
sensitive daughter. "As
a girl she was obviously good at singing and dancing, and she's a really
outstanding drummer," says Sonjie. At
17, Kellie was a member of the girl band Teen Queens, toured with the band in
South-East Asia and appeared as oneof the Teen Queens in the Network Ten series
E-Street. After
Teen Queens, Kellie toured Australia as a vocalist for Planet Gold, and has
since recorded with her new band Fame Insomnia.
Tim Harding's first
singing experience was with his family in churches and schools. "We
all sing, the whole family," says Tim's mum Linda. "We worked
for a Christian group, Youth for Christ in Australia, performing together."
Linda says that in addition
to his love for performing, Tim has also studied to be a social worker. He
plays piano and guitar, too, and has a passion for percussion. Now
22, he's also made his mark in acting roles with appearances in the movies Oscar
and Lucinda in 1997 and in Strange Planet two years later.
